The Significance of Ethics and Ethics Education in Daily Life | Michael D. Burroughs | TEDxPSU

Summary

The speaker emphasizes the ubiquity of ethical dilemmas in daily life and the importance of cultivating ethical awareness. They argue for the inclusion of ethics education in schools to equip students with the skills to navigate moral challenges. The talk highlights the potential of children to understand and engage with ethical concepts, suggesting that ethical education should be an integral part of their development.

Takeaways

• 🤔 Ethical dilemmas are a common part of life, prompting us to consider our principles and values.
• 🗣️ The decision to act ethically or unethically shapes our character and who we are as individuals.
• 👥 Ethicists come from various fields and are not just philosophers; they include business, research, and bioethicists who ponder right and wrong in their respective areas.
• 🧐 The term 'ethicist' applies to everyone as we all face ethical decisions and can strive to act ethically.
• 🏫 Schools play a crucial role in socializing and preparing us for adulthood, but often lack formal ethics education.
• 📚 Despite the importance of ethics, curricula are often maxed out with little room for ethical discussions, leading to missed educational opportunities.
• 👶 Children and adolescents have ethical convictions and are capable of understanding ethical concepts from a young age.
• 🌟 The ability to imagine and empathize is a strength in children that can be harnessed for ethical discussions and learning.
• 🤝 Ethics education should aim to respect diverse beliefs and values while also encouraging individuals to stand up for their ethical convictions.
• 🌱 Cultivating ethical awareness and developing skills in reasoning and empathy are essential for acting ethically and making good decisions.

Q & A

What is the main challenge the speaker discusses regarding ethical decision-making?

The main challenge discussed is the difficulty in making ethical decisions when faced with complex situations that involve personal values, societal expectations, and potential consequences on relationships or the environment.

What role does the speaker suggest an 'ethicist' plays in society?

The speaker suggests that an ethicist, including everyday ethicists, plays a role in deeply caring and thinking about matters of right and wrong, and how to choose ethically better courses of action in life.

According to the speaker, why is it important to discuss ethics in schools?

It is important to discuss ethics in schools because it helps students develop ethical awareness and skills needed to act ethically, which are crucial for addressing ethical issues they face in life.

What does the speaker mean by 'everyday ethicist'?

The 'everyday ethicist' refers to ordinary individuals who recognize and respond to ethical issues in their own lives, without necessarily having formal training in ethics.

What is the 'Peach Project' mentioned in the script?

The 'Peach Project' is a project run by the speaker where they engage in ethical discussions with young children using children's literature, artwork, and games to explore ethical concepts.

Why does the speaker argue that children are capable of ethical understanding?

The speaker argues that children are capable of ethical understanding because they naturally possess ethical convictions and ideas about fairness, inclusion, and right and wrong from a young age.

What is the implication of the speaker's discussion on the role of education in ethical development?

The implication is that education should include ethics education to help students develop the necessary skills to make ethical decisions and to engage critically with ethical issues, rather than avoiding them.

How does the speaker view the current approach to ethics in schools?

The speaker views the current approach to ethics in schools as inadequate, with a tendency to avoid or ignore ethical discussions due to concerns about controversy, leading to a lack of ethical education.

What does the speaker suggest is a common misconception about ethics education?

A common misconception is that ethics education is about imposing a universal set of beliefs or solving all ethical problems, when in reality it should be about fostering critical thinking and ethical awareness.

What is the speaker's stance on the importance of ethical foundations in making moral judgments?

The speaker's stance is that while personal beliefs are important, it's also crucial to consider ethical foundations based on basic human rights, care, and compassion to make sound moral judgments.

Outlines

00:00

🤔 Ethical Dilemmas in Daily Life

The speaker introduces the concept of ethics by presenting various ethical dilemmas that individuals might face, such as academic pressure, truth-telling, environmental concerns, and social obligations. They emphasize the importance of asking ethical questions and considering personal values and principles. The speaker, an ethicist and educator, discusses the role of ethicists in different fields and the everyday application of ethics. They argue for the necessity of cultivating ethical awareness and developing skills to act ethically, noting the lack of formal ethics education in schools and its impact on young adults' ability to address ethical issues.

05:03

📚 The Neglect of Ethics Education

This paragraph delves into the lack of ethics education in schools and its consequences. The speaker references Christian Smith's research, which indicates that many young adults lack the tools to address ethical issues effectively, often viewing ethics as purely subjective. The speaker argues for the importance of teaching ethical reasoning and empathic skills in schools, suggesting that children already possess ethical convictions that can be nurtured. They also discuss the potential for controversy in introducing ethics education and the need to respect diverse ethical beliefs while also encouraging students to stand up for their own ethical convictions.

10:03

🌱 Cultivating Ethical Awareness in Children

The speaker advocates for the inclusion of ethics education in children's curriculum, using the 'Philosophical Ethics and Early Childhood' project as an example. They argue that children have a natural ethical awareness and are capable of understanding and discussing ethical concepts from a young age. The speaker shares an anecdote about a four-year-old girl who demonstrated a clear sense of fairness and inclusion. They emphasize the importance of leveraging children's imagination and empathy to foster ethical growth, suggesting that ethics education should be an integral part of children's development, both in and out of school.

Keywords

💡Ethics

Ethics refers to the moral principles that govern a person's behavior or the conducting of an activity. In the video, ethics is central to the discussion of how individuals face moral dilemmas and make decisions that align with their values. The script uses examples such as cheating on a test or the use of fossil fuels to illustrate ethical challenges.

💡Ethical Dilemmas

Ethical dilemmas are situations that require a choice between options that are or seem equally unfavorable or mutually exclusive, often involving personal and moral principles. The script mentions dilemmas like turning in work that's not one's own or telling a friend an important truth that might end a friendship.

💡Character

Character in this context refers to the moral and ethical qualities that define an individual. The video suggests that the decisions and actions one takes are part of forming one's character as an ethical person.

💡Ethicist

An ethicist is someone who studies or teaches ethics, particularly in a professional capacity. The script explains that ethicists can be found in various fields such as business, research, and bioethics, and that they deeply care about matters of right and wrong.

💡Everyday Ethicist

The everyday ethicist is a concept introduced in the script to describe the ordinary person who recognizes and responds to ethical issues in their daily life. It emphasizes that ethical decision-making is not limited to professionals but is a part of everyone's life.

💡Ethical Awareness

Ethical awareness is the ability to recognize and understand ethical issues and the implications of one's actions. The script argues for the cultivation of ethical awareness as a way to develop skills needed to act ethically.

💡Moral Philosophy

Moral philosophy is a branch of philosophy that deals with questions of morality and ethics. The script suggests that one doesn't need a doctorate in moral philosophy to recognize ethical issues, indicating that ethical understanding is accessible to all.

💡Ethical Education

Ethical education refers to the process of teaching and learning about ethics, moral values, and principles. The script criticizes the lack of ethics education in schools and argues for its inclusion as a means to help students develop ethical reasoning and empathic skills.

💡Controversy

Controversy in the script refers to the potential disputes or disagreements that may arise from discussing ethical issues. It is noted that the avoidance of controversy sometimes leads to the sidelining of ethical education in schools.

💡Imaginative Presence

Imaginative presence is the ability to engage deeply with a situation, story, or ethical issue by using one's imagination to empathize and care about the outcome. The script points out that children often possess this strength, which can be leveraged in ethical education.

💡Ethical Community

An ethical community is a group or society that operates based on shared moral values and ethical principles. The script concludes by advocating for the building of an ethical community both within and beyond schools, suggesting that ethical education can help achieve this.

Highlights

The pressure of grades and the temptation to cheat to get ahead.

The dilemma of telling a friend an important truth that might end a friendship.

The recognition of personal contributions to climate change despite the need for transportation.

The ethical considerations of choosing a school for one's child based on test scores versus supporting a local school.

The moral quandary of intervening in a potentially harmful situation witnessed at a social event.

The importance of asking ethical questions to understand our principles and values.

The role of an ethicist in various fields and the concept of the 'everyday ethicist'.

The idea that ethics education is not just for philosophers but is a part of everyday life.

The prevalence of ethical issues in our lives and the need to develop better answers to these challenges.

The lack of ethics education in schools despite its importance for personal and social development.

The findings from 'Lost in Transition' regarding the understanding of ethics among emerging adults.

The avoidance of ethical discussions in schools and its impact on the development of ethical reasoning.

The importance of developing ethical awareness and skills to act ethically in various situations.

The argument for introducing ethics education in schools to help children respect diverse ethical beliefs.

The potential for children to be ethical agents and the importance of recognizing their ethical convictions.

The use of children's literature and art to facilitate ethical discussions with young children.

The ability of children to express ethical ideas and the importance of including them in ethical conversations.

The advocacy for ethics education as a means to build an ethical community within and beyond schools.

Transcripts

just consider it for a moment

you feel pressure regarding your class

grade and have an opportunity to turn in

work there's not your own to get ahead

you can tell a friend an important truth

which also might end the friendship you

recognize that the continued use of

fossil fuels and cars and planes

contribute to climate change and yet you

want to get where you need to go you

want about the implications of placing

your child in a new charter school with

higher testing scores as opposed to

supporting your own neighborhood school

where you see an interaction at a party

between a man and a woman that seems off

and you wonder whether you should

intervene we face challenges the life

large and small and if we listen closely

ask ethical questions of us what are my

principles what are my values what do I

stand for these questions asks us to

consider our obligations to ourselves

and to others the required decisions and

actions and turn these decisions and

actions form a part of who we are or our

character is ethical persons but how

well-equipped are we respond to these

challenges on what basis do we tell a

friend a painful truth as opposed to

engaging in deceit or decide to

intervene to someone help someone in

need more generally how do we know what

it means to live a good life as a

philosopher Ephesus and educator I'm

interested in how we recognize these

questions but also how we learn to

respond to them well so you're probably

familiar with what an educator is right

one who teaches and perhaps you've met a

philosopher before two other were exotic

species of some kind right but the ones

who ask big questions we might be

wondering what is an ethicist well

there's many kinds of us so there are

business ethicists who consider the

place of ethics in the workplace in

coping and financial sectors there are

research ethicists who discuss the

importance of integrity and research

practices and consider the broader

implications of the research we produce

and they're a bioethicists consider the

ethical implications of biomedical

research stem-cell research for example

or human impacts on the environment just

through GMOs but at his or her core the

emphasis is one who cares and thinks

deeply about matters of right and wrong

and how we can choose ethically better

as opposed to ethically problematic

courses of action in life so when I

refer to the ethicist I'm not referring

to some magical person or saint who

always knows and does and can tell

others the good

no am i referring to an exclusive class

of people licensed by university

hospital or business to practice ethics

rather the ethicist or the everyday

ethicist as I refer to it can be found

in our homes in our streets and in our

schools the everyday ethicist can be a

friend family member

acquaintance or stranger the everyday

ethicist is all of us installers we

recognize and counter and respond to the

ethical issues that arise in our own

lives now one doesn't need a doctorate

in moral philosophy to recognize this

many of you will probably already have

considered the everydayness of ethics in

your own life and I'm consulted with by

undergraduate students on a regular

basis regarding ethical issues that they

face in their life just some recent

examples just a discussion with a

student about conflict that she was

experienced about respecting the wishes

of her parents and choosing her own

course of study at here at Penn State

another student was conflicted about

loyalty through his partner and the

desire to end a long term relationship

and another student who's concerned

about Penn State's investment in fossil

fuels and how to pushpin state towards

investment in cleaner energy but my

point is not just that ethical issues

are prevalent in our lives many of us

probably have already thought about that

but that take your step further it's

possible to develop better or worse

answers to these challenges and

questions right we can act unethically

so in ways that perhaps we regrets and

hopefully we learn from and we can act

ethically and in ways that promote the

good and although there's no single

answer to to deciding between those two

options one way to respond is to

cultivate our own ethical awareness and

to develop the skills needed to act

ethically now ideally school which is

one of the most significant socializing

experiences we have would play a useful

role in helping us to respond to ethical

challenges right we go to school at

least in part to prepare us for

adulthood there's a variety of skills

academic social personal that allow us

to understand our world and ourselves -

the same we get training in a variety of

academic subjects and an informal

curriculum of extracurricular activities

clubs sports and so on but what we

dearly don't receive is training an

ethics education nor in an era of maxed

out curricula and standardized testing

do we really even leave open space for

frank and honest discussion about the

ethical issues that we face in life now

this lack of attention to ethics has

implications now in the book lost in

transition the dark side of emerging

adulthood Christian Smith who's a

sociologist from the University of Notre

Dame discusses the results of thousands

of survey interviews and hundreds of

in-person interviews that he conducted

with emerging adults ages 13 to 23

regarding their understanding of ethics

and two things became clear from these

interviews one that children and

adolescents often do raise ethical

questions in class write about the

issues they face in the hallway their

own lives the quicken their being taught

but these questions often sidestepped

and avoid it in the classroom by

teachers and administrators in order to

try and avoid controversy thus Smith

notes that the more pedagogy of most

middle and high schools or many middle

and high schools it seems to be avoid

ignore and pretend the issues will go

away but the flip side of this avoidance

is the failure to engage in useful

ethics education opportunities right to

educate and have teachers and children

realized that is possible with

critically and respectfully engage in

dialogue about ethical issues and that

just as we develop skills in other areas

in school we can develop skills say

reasoning and empathic skills that can

help us to develop as ethical persons

and second and related to the first it

became clear that many of the

interviewees didn't possess the tools to

adequately address the ethical issues

that they were facing in their life so

in discussion of issues ranging from

cheating on a test to obligations to

help others in need over 60% of the

interviewees discuss ethics as in what's

right or wrong as entirely up to each

individual now

personal beliefs opinions and intuitions

are vitally important in motivating us

to act ethically in the world and in

developing our own ethical understanding

but to think of all ethics and all

matters are right and wrong as

completely up to each individual can be

challenging when it comes to taking an

ethical stand as a community right not

just as individuals it gets things that

actually are ethically wrong so here I'm

thinking about assessing and taking that

people stand against sexual assault

against terrorism against institutional

racism and so on so what I'm arguing

here is not that personal opinions and

beliefs are important because they're

vitally important and support to respect

those differences but it's also

important to think about and think

deeply about certain ethical foundations

those based in basic human rights right

or care and compassion for others for

example that allow us to make basic

assessments of right and wrong and allow

us to make moral judgments in this sense

of judgments and there's multiple senses

of the term is not based in

self-righteous castigation of another

person or community it's based on a

desire to understand discuss and

evaluate ethical believes and do the

sometimes hard work required to make

good ethical decisions but this

distinction can be lost without any

attention to ethics education so what

i'ma do cating for here is not a

universal set of ethical beliefs for all

people nor a map that solves all ethical

problems because no such map exists what

I am arguing is that it would be

important for us to educate our children

and adolescents to respect the many

ethical beliefs and values that are in

the world to be properly humble about

their place in our broader community but

also to be willing to recognize and

stand up for their own ethical

convention there are ethical convictions

so what I also want to note here is that

if we're worried about the controversy

of introducing ethics into schools well

do well to recognize that children to

our everyday ethicists that is when

we're talking ethics with kids we're not

introducing something wholly new right

if we're doing a work well we're

recognizing the ethical concerns that

children already have and we're building

from those concerns to help them develop

as ethical people so in a project that I

run called philosophical ethics and

early childhood where the peach project

we're very happy about how the acronym

turned out right we spent a lot of time

talking ethics with three four and

five-year-olds and we use children's

literature artwork and games to motivate

those discussions and what I find in

that work my colleagues find as well is

that from a young age children possess

ethical convictions and ethical ideas

they have ideas about fairness about

inclusion and exclusion about what's

right what's right and wrong right so to

give you an example in a recent

discussion I had with a young girl age 4

in the class I was working with I just

about why she would would not include a

new child into her playgroup it was a

hypothetical girl named Christina she

said she would include this go on a

playgroup because she knew would make

her feel good and so it was the right

thing for her to do and she went on to

draw a picture of what this would look

like for her right and not only is it

just a beautiful picture so it's just

worth it for that

and it's also clear that she's here

expressing the sense of community that

she's trying to build and watch think

it's important to include this girl into

her friend or her friend group good so

what can clear to me from this

discussion and many others is that

children possess a sharp ethical

awareness this is evident historically

for example in children of the civil

rights movement who participated in

school desegregation and tremendously

brave ways and in many ways that adults

failed to do but it's also evident in

our you know more common daily

conversations with kids when we use

children's literature such as frog and

toad in the giving tree' in children

raise questions and insights about

issues of fairness honesty loyalty

respect and many other ethical values

but one of children's greatest strengths

in these conversations that adults often

lack actually is the ability to be

imaginative ly present to care about the

story in a way in which they they almost

talked with the characters and to care

about the outcome in a vital way in this

sense ethics doesn't need to be a mere

exercise or a separate discipline for

children give me an outgrowth of their

imagination and their daily present

concerns so what I am advocating for you

today is that we think about the

presence of other concerns in our life

and the possibility of ethics education

as being a positive and helping us to

address and think more deeply about

those concerns and hopefully redouble

our efforts to build an ethical

community both within and beyond our

schools thanks very much

you